Medical Insurance for older permanent residents

K

kabadkar

Registered Users (C)
Hello,

Apologies if this question is not directly relevant to this forum. This question was posted some time ago by someone else, with an incomplete answer, so I am asking for more information.

For senior individuals (60+) who have obtained a GC and have come to reside in the U.S., what sources of medical insurances are there? Here is what I have found (I am open to corrections):

If you are 65 and a U.S. permanent resident, you qualify for Medicare, but the cost is around $425 (or more - this information is about 6 - 12 months old). If you are under 65, you don't even qualify for Medicare.

The question then is, if you have never worked in the U.S., and are planning to stay here, is there an "affordable" source of medical insurance that people are using? If someone who have done this research, and/or is currently signed up with such an insurance provider, I would greatly appreciate knowing this information. A link to another forum/website where such information is available is also welcome.

Thanks,

Ashwin
 
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kabadkar
im in the same boat as you.

for people 65 and older the medicare option is one of the better ones(in terms of premiums).for people younger than 65 look for private insurance companies.health insurance portals provide options on different levels of insurance.for decent private insurance be prepared to pay 400$ or more.medication is extra.

also the greencard sponsor is liable for 3 years. so look into those issues also.
im in the process of researching liability, estate trusts etc.

I commend you for sponsoring your older relatives and preparing to support them here.Good luck and best wishes for your family
 
Thanks very much for the support and responses. I reside in Colorado. Does this make a difference?

Is there a forum here on this subject? I would think at least a few people here would be interested in a separate forum on this issue. Can the sponsors of this website please consider this?

Ashwin
 
I am faced with a similar issue for an older relative who has a GC but is not employed (she works as an independent contractor). Once you are past 40 at enrollment, the premium for individual full service health insurance is prohibitive.

You definitely want to by some sort of 'catastrophic' coverage, something that kicks in if you have a hospital bill >>10k (which can happen in two to three days of hospitalization). This is far more affordable and limits the disastrous financial effect a hospitalization can have. It still doesn't fix the problem of how to pay for a regular doctors visit or necessary medications.

Some states (I believe VT) offer programs where adults can buy into the states medicaid HMO at the same premium the state would fork over for an eligible beneficiary. Because the reimbursements these plans pay to the individual doctors are pretty dismal, the array of medical services available through these plans tends to be limited. But it surely beats beeing uninsured.

Another option, is for your relative to start a small business, this way he/she can buy group health coverage through some small business associations or the state chamber of commerce at a better rate than individual coverage (you can contract your mom as a caterer to feed your kids in order to generate business).

Once you are 65 you definitely want to get into medicare. As it is subsidized by the medicare tax, it is relatively affordable for the beneficiary (I don't know if the 475 figure is correct, if yes it is definitely the best deal available for someone over 65). They cover 100% of hospitalization, all physician visits and some preventive services (mammograms, pap smears, prostate cancer screening). They don't (yet) cover most of prescription meds. Pretty much all hospitals and most physicians offices will accept fee-for-service medicare.
 
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ok a question that I specialize in

when you have elderly who have not put into social security for whatever reason they can apply for SSI

it is way easier to get once the person turns 65 but it's worth a try now.

Once the person receives SSI you automatically get Medicaid in your state.

If this doesn't work another option would be to apply for Medicaid directly at the welfare office in your state.
 
bb_5555 said:
If this doesn't work another option would be to apply for Medicaid directly at the welfare office in your state.
Click to expand...

Does it really work like this? I mean, what's the purpose of the affidavit of support, then?
 
bb 555

are you saying you can receive SS income without having contributed to it?

I dont think you can legally avail of SS or medicare/medicaid without having contributed to the system(s).
 
ok guys let me explain this further

social security you pay into it

social security disability insurance is same thing you pay into it.

if you did not pay into either system even 1 day of working then you are not entitled to either.

now that does not mean that you are SOL

you can apply for SSI which is basically fed's version of welfare.

Once you turn 65 and did not pay into social security at all you are automatically qualified to receive SSI because the federal government in all of their wisdom declares that once a person turns 65 he or she is no longer required to work and is treated in a sense "disabled".

now whether or not the sponsor has to pay I am not sure but probably so since it is technically welfare.

before you even consider this route better make sure they get citizenship first.

If anyone needs any more cliarification please feel free to send me a message.
 
bb_5555 said:
now whether or not the sponsor has to pay I am not sure but probably so since it is technically welfare.
Click to expand...

... so I suppose it may not be an option for kabadkar's parents as you suggested in your previous posts... :confused:
 
it is an option once the person becomes citizen

also I was reading further and found that although Medicaid you would have to pay back, emergency Medicaid does not have to be paid back.

so that is another option just in case that person gets really ill before becoming citizen.
 
What is SSI?

bb_5555 said:
ok guys let me explain this further

social security you pay into it

social security disability insurance is same thing you pay into it.

if you did not pay into either system even 1 day of working then you are not entitled to either.

now that does not mean that you are SOL

you can apply for SSI which is basically fed's version of welfare.
Click to expand...

What does SSI stand for?
 
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